Dwight Howard Says He Loves Kobe Bryant’s Confrontational Style

It hasn’t been the smoothest, easiest, or even friendliest transition from foes to teammates between Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard. The Los Angeles Lakers’ superstar center claims now that the occasional friction between the two is actually healthy, and something he enjoys. Per the LA Daily News: “I love it,’ Howard said. ‘That’s something we needed. A lot of times we have a lot of guys come together and nobody wants to step on anybody’s toes or do anything against anybody else. We want to win. In order for us to win, we have to pull the best out of each other every night.’ [...] ‘We all know Kobe is the first option,’ Howard said. ‘Whoever scores after that doesn’t matter. The defensive end is where I take lead and make sure I hold guys accountable and make sure do my job in being active.’ Both Howard and Bryant have refused to talk about the specifics of their meeting. But it mostly rested on Howard needing to gripe less about his secondary offensive role and how he can lead the team on defense. How much of an adjustment period did it take for Howard to accept that role? ‘It wasn’t an easy one. We’re both two big dogs and we bump heads,’ Howard said. ‘Instead of us bumping heads, we can do things to lead this team offensively. He’s going to lead our team. On the defensive end, it’s my job. We all have different roles. We all have one common goal. We have to be together in order for us to succeed.’ To win, Bryant has argued the need to have a culture that’s ‘confrontational.’ [...] ‘I’m happy me and Kobe are getting on the same page,’ Howard said. ‘In order for us to win, me and him have to be together and on the same page. We have to lead this team.’”